A job well done

Shanghai has revitalized World Expos and benefited the city

This summer many Shanghai residents and visitors are asking me: "Which is your favorite pavilion?" "Hard to decide", is my usual response, while secretly favoring the Sweden, Belgium and USA pavilions.

Like many residents of Shanghai, my family and I have visited the Expo several times, on hot days and very hot days, and we've patiently endured the queues that have no discernible beginning and no obvious end. We've lingered in the Expo Garden along with the daily throngs of hundreds of thousands of visitors, mostly Chinese, but also plenty of foreigners.

Visitors from all over come to see distinctive and whimsical - even weird - pavilions, and participate in this event in China in 2010.

Visitors can experience many things at the Expo: the giant baby in the Spain Pavilion, the fascinating facade of the UK Pavilion, the magnificence of the China Pavilion and rumors of free food and drink in pavilions not visited, among other things.

I must admit that I was skeptical about the Expo. I was convinced that World Expos were relics of an earlier time, significant events way back when people did not have easy access to information about other cultures and countries. But Expo 2010 Shanghai has gone far beyond the quaint notion of a world's fair.

The architecture, the organization and the sheer energy of the Expo are a triumph for Shanghai and for China, and a boost to the idea of World Expos in general.

I feel sorry for the organizers of the next Expo in Milan, Italy, in 2015. They probably feel the pressure of living up to Shanghai's success, very much like the organizers of the upcoming London Olympics must feel after the outstanding games in Beijing. Buona fortuna Milano!

The planning and execution of the Expo and the revitalization of Shanghai have been extraordinary, another example of China's ability to stage major events on a grand scale. It's now official: no country does "big and audacious" like China.

I wonder, of course, about the Expo's costs and whether the resources should have been spent on other things for the benefit of China's citizens. It is clear, however, that millions of people from China and beyond have been entertained, educated and motivated by the Expo, and "Better City, Better Life" rings true for the citizens of Shanghai.

I predict locals will be a little sad when the Expo ends in October; we'll likely see the Expo mascot Haibao in various poses and Expo volunteers in brightly colored uniforms disappear from the city's streets and parks. And city life will get just a little bit quieter.

A little sad, indeed, but I am certain the Expo will cast a bright light on Shanghai for years to come.

Congratulations Shanghai, you deserve a big round of applause!

The author is a Shanghai resident and president of International Paper Asia.

(China Daily 08/20/2010)